Yogi and the Pic-a-nic basket

I have seen 4 bears in my life (outside of my trip to Yellowstone, you can't throw a rock without hitting a grizzly there :). The first was on a bike ride to Genesee with Linda Erway, it crossed the road right in front of us! The second was on highway 32 by Potato Patch campground, at about the same time my father passed away. The other two have been right over by Thompson Peak. I don't have a picture of any of them, the moment was all consuming for me. Every time it has given me an even deeper appreciation for our wilderness. 

In the summer when Rick and I get off work we are like kids when the school bell rings! Rushing through chores on lunch hours, before work or before bedtime so those prime hours can be spent playing outdoors. This means meals are eaten on the go. We refer to it as a dinner date! It's the best. Loading up the camp stove to cook hotdogs on the mountain is a real treat (be sure you have a permit and are in an area where this is allowed AND SAFE). 

The other evening was when I saw the 4th bear. Rick and I were on one of the backroads between Thompson and Red Rock Lookout. Deli Manager, Hope Browning had made us the most delish sandwiches for dinner. We stopped at a beautiful meadow and there it was, cinnamon coat gleaming in the sunlight as he/she lumbered along in that bear way. Glorious. The meadows are filled with flowers, the streams flowing, this is the time to get out there! You might even get to see a bear! Our deli would be happy to take care of dinner for you. 

Here is my standing sandwich order~

Onion Roll (our deli breads are made fresh in the Bakery each night)

Best Foods Mayo, just a little

Salsa Turkey, half the usual amount

Provolone

Spinach

Tomato

Onion
Olives

And Rick's~

Onion Roll

Sweet hot mustard, just a little

Roast Beef

Spinach

Onion

Pepperoncini

Jalapeños, diced

Tomato
Olives
Pickles

Thanks so much to our Deli for making all those summer meals for me! 

RIGHT NOW! We just went last night and there are miles of mules ear that will bloom in the next few days! It's gonna be an epic bloom! Here's a little video to show what I mean~

Eagle Scouts!

Gerald Ford, 38th President of the United States.

Neil Armstrong, Astronaut and first man on the moon.

James Lovell, Astronaut.

Just three of the men who became notable AFTER achieving the rank of Eagle Scout, an incredibly impressive status in the Boy Scouts of America. Only 4% of Scouts have earned this honor since 1911 and I gotta believe Lassen County has been carrying a lot of that load! Local Troop 58 and 159 just inducted 7 new Eagle Scouts; Henry Anderson, Hayden Chittock, Ryan Elison, Jacob Memmott, Aiden Phillips, Kenton Ritz and Jacob Wilburn. 

All branches of our Military recognize Eagle Scouts with an automatic promotion of two ranks, upon entry, which includes a pay raise. What a great thing for any college or job application, plus scholarship eligibility anywhere from $1000 to $50,000! 

                  

To earn Eagle Scout these young men each had to complete a community project and, wow, have they added some wonderful things to our area. Four of the projects were at Peter Lassen's Monument where for years there was a tipping tree, so dangerous that the scouts were not allowed to do anything out there until it was removed. Once it was cut down the tree's harvested wood was made into gorgeous benches and a new entrance . Gone is the old turnstile that embedded slivers in your hand with every visit. Replaced with a turnstile that's easy to move and large enough to bring your picnic or bike in with you. The old monument received an enclosure while the new granite marker was placed on a stamped concrete base. AND speaking of bringing your bike, (one of my favorite topics) a bike rack was installed for the community swimming pool. At Ranch Park trail markers where made and installed to guide us through on bike or foot or horseback. Seriously wonderful stuff for us all to enjoy.  

            

Then this. Like 100 years ago trees were planted at the old courthouse signifying each Lassen County life lost in WWI. Many years ago 2 markers where placed but the others were never finished. Now each tree has a marker with the name of the fallen soldier. Someone told me this was 20 years in the making. Nice work. 

I would like to thank and congratulate these fine young men in the many years of commitment required to achieve the distinction of Eagle Scout. We are so Hometown Proud of you!

*HUGE Hometown thanks to Scout Master Chip Chittock for asking Rick if he would make a video for the presentation dinner. Otherwise I might not have even known about these young men. The completed video brought tears to my eyes. Rick put together his drone footage and each of the Scout's talk about their individual projects. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! 

Eagle Scout Court of Honor Video

Blackberry or Peach, it's Cobbler season!

"Cobblers were never meant to be pretty". This is what I read in the history of cobblers. If this is true I NAILED IT.  I'm not talking about the person that fixes your shoes here, I mean those desserts with rich, sweet fruit stewed with sugar and topped with some sort of biscuit-y dough. Frequently the top is made with Bisquick and not nearly enough sweetness for me... until now. I came across a recipe that is so simple (right up my alley) and fast (even better) I can make it on my lunch hour with ingredients I always have on hand. Well, except for 4 cups of berries, or apples, or peaches, or whatever is at it's absolute peak. There are many versions of this recipe online but this is the final from my test kitchen.

Since the blackberries have been the best I can remember in years, I started with those. Keep in mind I am that girl that orders a diet coke with a burger and fries when you see I use nonfat milk. Gotta cut where you can :) You can use any milk you have. Here is my new go-to dessert ~

 

4 cups Blackberries, washed.

1 cup flour

1 cup nonfat milk :)

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup butter

1 tbs baking powder

1/16 tsp (aka a pinch) salt

1 tsp lemon juice

Preheat oven to 375*. 

The rest is so easy you'll be done and waiting for the oven to reach temp. 

Place butter in 13X9 baking dish and place in the oven to melt, I used glass and melted it in the microwave. Place berries, lemon juice and 1 cup of the sugar in a saucepan over med/high heat, stirring constantly, bring to a boil. Stir together flour, 1 cup of sugar, baking powder and salt. Add milk to dry ingredients and stir just until everything is wet, don't worry about a few lumps, pour over melted butter. Spoon berries and juice on top and bake for 40-45 minutes. The crust will emerge through the berry juice and become sweet and carmelized, crisp and gooey all at once...oh my goooooodnessss. We liked it so much we made peach too! The only difference was we topped the peach cobbler with sprinkled cinnamon before baking. Incredible. 

Cobbler may not be pretty but what it lacks in looks it sure makes up for in flavor! As much as Rick liked being my taste tester I know just what I'm making him for Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to all those Hometown SuPeR Dads out there! And Happy Father's Day to the man of my dreams, you make every day the adventure of a lifetime <3

Chief Jones

After I talk to someone I’m writing a page 4 on I always ask if I can steal photos from their social media pages, most say sure. When I asked Chief of Police Kevin Jones he grabbed his phone and said he had a picture he wanted me to use, it’s a painting of his kids. That sums up the Chief to me. It’s not about him, it’s about his family, his team at the Police Department and all of the other leaders he works with. You can see the complete camaraderie between Chief Jones, Fire Chief James Moore and Sheriff Dean Growdon. As a matter of fact Chief Jones worked at the Sheriff’s Department under Sheriff Growdon for 10 years, strong bonds.                           
  
                                       
I feel like I’m telling this whole story backwards but sometimes that’s where the magic happens. The last thing I ask is what we can do to help. Chief Jones said he believes the people in Susanville possess a ‘situational awareness’, when we’re driving we can’t just drive we have to always be on the lookout for deer or who knows what else. He wants us to use that intuition, if we see something out of order, report it. He points out that 20 or 30 years ago someone certainly would have. Do that now. Let them check it out, it’s their job, even if only 1 in 10 really is a problem the Chief says that’s a success.
                                 

Our Police Department is doing such a terrific job while operating with 5 fewer officers than they had in 1999, the Chief attributes this to his team's passion for what they do. Some of the other things going on at the PD seem small but absolutely make a difference, painting the squad room, repairing vehicles, making sure the officers have what they need to perform their duties. I clearly see they are like a family and every time Officer Terra Avilla posts #spdcommunity it makes me smile. What a great community we have, filled with so many good people and a whole lotta Hometown Heroes!
                     
What a beautiful family!


This week we salute Susanville Police Chief Kevin Jones and all the Hometown Heroes at SPD!